Food dispensers, in particular beverage dispensers, usually comprise a housing defining an internal space in which devices for preparing the beverages are positioned. These devices can be devices for storing, dosing, mixing, beverage ingredients and pumping, heating, cooling, diluents. Most of these devices are connected to motors and directly or indirectly to a general electric supply.
In order to have access to these devices either for current maintenance or for repair, the dispensers usually comprise a door. For security reasons, the opening of the door immediately leads to the switching off of the electric supply in the machine. Then there is no risk that the person in charge of refilling the dispenser with beverage ingredients or of cleaning the devices may be hurt. Usually the automatic shutting off is due to the change of position of the door that does not maintain a mechanical and electrical contact in the dispenser any longer.
Yet when the dispenser is opened by a technician in charge of technical tasks like control, repair or calibration, these operations require that the electric supply of the dispenser is switched on. Consequently the technicians usually own a specific key or tool to switch on the dispenser even if the door is opened. The key or tool creates the mechanical and electrical contact in place of the door.
One common issue encountered with this key or tool is that the technician frequently loses it and is not able to use it again.
Another common issue is that the technician forgets to remove the key or tool from the dispenser once he has finished his work on the dispenser and closes the door before removing the key or tool. This leads to damaging of the door and the key or tool.
An object of the present invention is to provide a solution to the above issues.